One Night Only
by AnnaTW
Summary: "Hang on," Tony raised his eyebrows and tilted his head "I can't have one night stands?" - Tony/Pepper


**So I have about a million ideas running through my head and about six halves of stories. This is just one which i've managed to finish. (As always, excuse the mistakes - but a message if there are any obvious ones wouldn't go-a-miss)**

It was another typical day in Malibu. The sun was shining, people were rushing and the city was buzzing. Yet not so typically, Pepper wasn't busy. The week had been mundane and she was bored just sitting in her office at Stark Industries. Tony had been quiet, Iron man was inactive and business was usual.

After huffing and an hour just aimlessly clicking through her emails, Pepper decided to visit her old boss. She shut down her computer and pulled away from her desk. Standing up and walking out her office before shutting the lights off. Pepper walked past her secretary.

"I'm going to be out for the rest of the day," Pepper sighed "I'm all clear right?"

"Yes Miss. Potts," her secretary smiled up "Have a good day."

"You too," Pepper yelled as she passed through the door and out into the hallway.

Making her way to Tony's was relatively easy. By the time she was driving everyone was in work so the morning traffic had passed. Breezing down the coastal highway Pepper was content. She hadn't seen Tony for around two weeks now and she'd missed him. His quirky, overpowering presence was comforting to her and she had felt a bit lost without it. She didn't know if he'd be there, or if he'd be awake, or even what she was exactly going to do when she got there. But she knew she wanted to spend the day with him simply lazing around.

As she pulled into his driveway Pepper gazed up at the mansion through her sun-glasses. It had always amazed her that _just _Tony lived there. She would have felt lonely and a bit isolated, but he managed to fill it. With his own personality or his bots, Pepper didn't know, but the mansion always seemed full. Pulling the handbrake on and picking up her handbag, Pepper exited the car and went to walk up the front steps of his house.

She froze at what she saw.

A girl. A woman. Tangled hair, crumpled dress and holding her heels in her hand. All tell-tale signs of a one night stand. _Well fantastic! _Tony was back to one night stands? The woman didn't seem to register Pepper's presence and simply strolled past her and into the awaiting limo. The limo Pepper hadn't taken notice of. Happy was standing by the driver's door and nodded his head at her. He was giving her a particular look – as if he was tired. Probably tired of dealing with Tony on his own. He was grateful for Pepper's unexpected visit and got into the car to drop the unknown woman where she wanted.

Squeezing her eyes shut and taking a deep breath, Pepper turned to walk into the mansion. Her heels clicked on the shiny, marble floors as she strolled further in. She found him in the kitchen. He was sitting on a bar stool with his back to her. He was only wearing a pair of shorts and his hair was a mess. Approaching him, Pepper came round to the opposite side of the island and dropped her bag heavily on the counter.

"Who was that?" Pepper asked curtly.

Tony set his glass of orange juice with a clink and surveyed Pepper for a minute. His arms were folded leaning on the counter and his eyes looked heavily lidded. He had early morning stubble creeping up his jaw-line. Tony coughed before he talked to Pepper for the first time in two weeks.

"Good morning to you too Pepper," Tony said with a croaky voice and picked his drink up again.

"Hi Tony," Pepper seemed too distracted for niceties. She repeated her previous question "Who was that?"

"I want to say Cheryl," Tony focused for a second before adding with amusement "But I can't be sure."

Pepper didn't seem amused in the slightest. Tony wasn't hers, but he sure as hell wasn't anyone else's. He'd had a one night stand? This was exactly what Pepper feared. She didn't want him going back to his old ways because they just caused years of hell for her. She hated having to watch a parade of bare-skinned beauties strut in and out his front door. But no matter how much he tried, she was never sure if she could make that jump from colleagues to lovers.

"You didn't even get her name?" Pepper raised her eyebrows.

"Nope." Tony popped the end 'p' and grinned up at Pepper. As though he was rubbing even more salt into her wound that he'd had sex with a woman that wasn't her last night.

"Why did you sleep with her?" Pepper tried to suppress her annoyance.

Tony took another gulp of his juice and furrowed his eyebrows before adding sarcastically "Because I wanted to."

Pepper wanted to cry. He wanted to. Tony _wanted _to. He wasn't dunk, or high. He simply wanted another warm body in his bed that night and it didn't seem to bother him that it wasn't her. It was happening. The old Tony was on his way back in and Pepper was dreading the long-term consequences.

"Right," Pepper sighed again "And are you going to see her more than once?"

Tony gave her an odd look at that comment and sucked his lips together "I wasn't planning on it."

"So a one night stand – that's what that was?"

"Why do you care?" Tony started to get defensive. He wasn't sure how Pepper could get so pissy about him being with another woman. Especially once she'd pushed him away for so long. So he went out last night and picked up a girl – so what? Pepper wasn't his mum, or his girlfriend.

"I just don't think one night stands are... healthy." Pepper bit down on her lip and avoided eye contact.

Tony leaned back and stared at Pepper "Healthy?"

"Yeah," Pepper answered assertively.

"Well I used to have them all the time," Tony swung slightly on his bar-stool "And I didn't seem to turn out too bad. Did I?"

Pepper rolled her eyes "No. It's just I don't think you shouldhave them-"

"Hang on," Tony raised his eyebrows and tilted his head "I can't have one night stands?"

Pepper shifted from each foot to the other "I didn't say that. "

"But that's what you meant," Tony sat upright and leaned further into her.

"No-"

"Then why are you making a big deal of it?" Tony threw his arms up and let them slap back down against his thighs "It's not like i'm seeing anyone. Am I?"

The moment hung in the air. They both stared at each other with nearly enough the same thing running through their heads. The fact that they both had feelings towards each other was a known fact. Not just between the two of them. Rhodey knew it, the media knew it and pretty much the whole of America knew it. It was a common fact. Something that was common though was the fact that they were both gradually giving in to these feelings. To be honest, Tony would have given in years ago. He w_as _Tony Stark. But out of respect to Pepper he held back. Pepper wanted to give in, but she was always the professional.

"No you're not,"

"Then back off Pepper." Tony stood from his chair "I don't know why you're getting all bitchy," he started to make his way round the counter towards where she was standing "But technically I can have sex with who I want, when I want."

He stood right in front of her now "So get off my back because you could have been with me a _long _time ago."

Pepper stared into his eyes for a minute before she snapped. She grabbed the sides of his face, her fingers curling round his ears and pulled his lips to catch hers. He was right. _God _why was Tony always right? She could have had him years ago, and she would have been inexplicably happy. She just never took him up his offer. But she was now. _To hell with it_. She'd wanted Tony since pretty much the first time she met him, but then it was just raw sexual attraction. Over the years it grew into more and she was head over heels in love with this man. But that bit of information could wait for the minute.

She was a bit busy.

The kiss was intense. They were burning up years of sexual tension. Tony took a minute before he gripped the material of Pepper's dress shirt and pulled her body to press up against his. His bare chest brushed against her exposed skin of her V-shirt as he took a deep breath. Pepper scraped her fingernails along Tony's skin until her hands were buried in his knotted hair. She tugged on it and shifted her body to move against his. Tony pulled back as air became a necessity. He pecked her on her lips with feather light kisses a few times before stepping back. He was stopped by Pepper's hands on his neck pulling him back in. She slanted her head to deepen the kiss.

"I'm getting all _bitchy _because I thought you'd changed." Pepper pulled back herself now and started to busy herself with something in her bag.

Tony's hand fell to his side while the other leaned on the counter next to Pepper. He stared at her for a minute, in a complete daze, before answering her. "I have changed."

"Yeah well what's with Cheryl or whoever she was?" Pepper asked.

"Hey," Tony pulled her attention from her bag and enclosed one of her wrists in his hands "That's _one_ girl in seven months. So what I didn't know her name and who cares i'm not going to see her again? It's not like i'm cheating on anyone."

"Then why does it feel like you did?"

Tony felt like crap. He'd honestly felt like just having some fun the night before. He'd gone out, got a bit drunk and met some nice people. He didn't think it'd have repercussions. Tony was getting bored with the whole lonely, bachelor act and decided he wanted someone. Then and there. And he knew Pepper wasn't going to take him up on his offer. But she'd managed to turn it round. He thought he was having harmless fun and then Pepper goes and makes him feel like his just been unfaithful to her. _Great_.

"Don't try to make this about you Pepper. You know i've liked you for a long while now. So stop making me feel like crap when i've done something totally innocent." Tony was getting irritated "And anyway, if I did something so terrible, why did you just kiss me?"

"Because it should be me," Pepper answered without hesitation "It should be me feeling satisfied after a night with you; it should be me waking up in your bed. Not a random girl from a bar."

"Yeah well it can be you," Tony stood closer to her now "You're the only one getting in the way of the possibility of us. But while you still have doubts on our relationship, don't stop me from moving on because getting over you is one of the hardest things i'm going to have to do."

Pepper stared at his arc reactor for a moment before wrapping her arms tightly around his neck and hugging him. She buried her nose into his neck and squeezed her eyes shut, relishing in being so close to him. Tony hesitantly wrapped his own arms around Pepper's waist.

"Don't get over me," she mumbled into his skin.

Tony didn't quite catch what she said "What?"

Pepper pulled back until she was mere millimetres away from his face again "Don't get over me Tony."

She answered before pressing her lips to his gently. She marvelled at the way he tasted and took her time to appreciate his skills. The first kiss was full of passion; the second was full of devotion. She could taste the orange juice and faint traces of mint tooth-paste. She could smell his aftershave and feel his stubble graze her skin around her mouth. She felt one of his hands cup the back of her neck, supporting her with his other at her waist.

"It was one night Pepper," Tony mumbled into her ear, he kissed her temple lightly "I swear. One night only."

**What do you think my dear fictionnettes? (Yes, I did just make that word up) AnnaTW (:**


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